A different Korean War

Xen

Banned
How would the fate of the world have looked had the Korean War gone differently?

The POD is 1951, the Korean War has hit a nasty stalemate, many are being killed from all sides. But in this timeline the First Taiwan Straight Crisis results in the US Navy and Air Force supporting Kai-Sheck's Kuomintang forces as they launched an invasion of mainland China.

China began to pull forces from the Korean peninsula in response. The withdrawal of part of China's forces gave the UN the Achilles Hill it needed. The morale of the communists began to suffer greatly, and it showed on the battlefield. The war was pushed well north of the 38th parallel, with the UN ceasing Pyongyang again.

Concerned more about the Kuomintang than the American's China considered Korea a lost cause and withdrew its troops to fight in the south. Without their Chinese allies, and with minimal support from the Soviet Union the Korean peninsula was overrun by UN troops. Kim Il-Sung and his followers fled to China setting up a Peoples Democratic Republic of Korea in exile in Beijing. US military bases were scattered across Korea, including a Naval base at Ch'ongjin, a base that the Soviets protested vehemetly.

In spite of the victory in Korea, Harry S. Truman elected not to run for President in 1952. General Dwight Eisenhower was nominated by the Republican Party and cruised to a victory. The western war against Communism was far from over, the French still engaged the Communists in Southeast Asia, and the US Navy and Air Force still gave support to the Kuomintang in their struggle against the PLA.

America's Other War

The United States took great intrest in re-establishing the Kuomintang on mainland Asia. The Soviets and PRC on the other hand had no intrest in seeing the Kuomintang gain a foothold on the mainland. Hainan Island fell to the Kuomintang early in the struggle and was securly held. The island was used by the US Navy and the Royal Navy to support Kai-Sheck. It also made for an unsinkable aircraft carrier to be used by the western air forces for their strikes against the Communists.

The Soviet's increased their support of Mao, and the US increased theirs of Kai-Sheck, shortly after Stalins death in late 1954, a ceasefire was declared in April 1955. The Kuomintang controlled most of south China below the Chang Jang River, declaring Martial Law. Kai-Sheck chose Xiamen as his capital.

Like Germany, China would become a hotbed of Cold War activity divided between the pro-Soviet North and pro-American South. Both superpowers built bases in their sphere of influence.
 
Xen said:
How would the fate of the world have looked had the Korean War gone differently?

The POD is 1951, the Korean War has hit a nasty stalemate, many are being killed from all sides. But in this timeline the First Taiwan Straight Crisis results in the US Navy and Air Force supporting Kai-Sheck's Kuomintang forces as they launched an invasion of mainland China.

How likelly is this? The invasion, I mean? And specially US support for it. Would that bring SU to the fight?


Xen said:
China began to pull forces from the Korean peninsula in response. The withdrawal of part of China's forces gave the UN the Achilles Hill it needed. The morale of the communists began to suffer greatly, and it showed on the battlefield. The war was pushed well north of the 38th parallel, with the UN ceasing Pyongyang again.

Even if invasion goes as you propose, would Chinese really need to pull troops from Korea? And wouldn't US support weaken UN troops as well?
 

Xen

Banned
aktarian said:
How likelly is this? The invasion, I mean? And specially US support for it. Would that bring SU to the fight?

Its not unlikely at all. Something similiar nearly went down in 1954 and again in 1958, there were skirmishes between the two Chinas until the 1960's when the USSR appeared to be the bigger threat to the mainland.

Just change it to happening in 1951.

aktarian said:
Even if invasion goes as you propose, would Chinese really need to pull troops from Korea? And wouldn't US support weaken UN troops as well?

Although officially they were volunteers, the Chinese Army would be needed to fight in China. Mao would probably see to this personally, he would be in greater danger from the Kuomintang than the Americans. Of course the part I had the Kuomintang win in China is small part of the country, the communists control the bulk of the land, and most of the population.
 
Hey Xen, isn't this POD unrealistic because the situation of the 7th Fleet becoming involved in the Taiwan Straits and the direct involvement in the Korean conflict of Nationalist Chinese troops, was exactly what the Truman admin wished to avoid ?
 
Melvin,

Perhaps something occurs that forces Truman's hand, or to convince him that the Soviets might not actively support China. Perhaps Stalin has a stroke and is incommunicado for a few weeks, or maybe Mao makes some outburst that leads to the Soviets "cutting him adrift" (not seriously, perhaps cutting off supplies to just to show him who's boss, but with unforeseen consequences).
 
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